Ten years ago, a bizarre "it", a building
between a ship and a gigantic fish, was
anchored on the banks of the river
Nervión, in the ex-industrial area of
Bilbao. Its back was clad in titanium
panels and its stomach was filled up
with masterpieces of art. The Bilbaínos
went down to see. They were dazzled
by the sudden glare that flooded their
grey city; shocked by the amount of
money spent for this project, totally
funded by the Basque authorities, they
were incredulous of the future.
Ten years later, this "it", the
Guggenheim Museum, changed the
city's image.
Bilbao, the former coal-mining city has
become like the Mecca of modern
architecture and avant guard design,
and consequently a boosting tourist
destination.

1455-06: Silken Grand Hotel Domine (5 stars)
Opened in front of the Guggenheim Museum in 2002 . Designed integrally by Javier Mariscal studio, Fernando Salas and Inaki Aurrecoetxea were in charge of the project.
http://www.grandhoteldominebilbao.com
Atrium, the "Cypress fossil" sculpture

Bilbao, the Mecca of modern architecture / 1455-01: Guggenheim Museum of Modern Art
Built in 1997 by Frank O. Gehry / Spain / Bilbao

Bilbao, the Mecca of modern architecture / 1455-02: Guggenheim Museum of Modern Art entrance . Built
in 1997 by Frank O. Gehry / Spain / Bilbao

1455-32: Zubizuri pedestians bridge or Puente de las Universidades (Univeristies Bridge) on Ria de Bilbao
river. Shaped as a bird, designed by Santiago Calatrava, inaugurated in 1997, made in white glass and

1455-33: Sondika Airport (Txoriherri Valley)
Nickname "La Paloma" (the Dove) after its bird shape. Designed by Santiago Calatrava, opened in

Bilbao, the Mecca of modern architecture / 1455-34: 'Fosteritos' (detail) the entrances to the city's subway
designed by Norman Foster. Plaza Moyua..Subdelegation del Gobierno building in the background. /

Bilbao, the Mecca of modern architecture / 1455-35: panoramic view of the old city / Spain / Bilbao

Bilbao, the Mecca of modern architecture / 1455-36: panoramic view of the old city / Spain / Bilbao

Bilbao, the Mecca of modern architecture / 1455-39:Town hall building, built in 1892 by Joaquin Rucoba.
Sculpture by Jorge Oteiza (2002) in the foreground. / Spain / Bilbao

Bilbao, the Mecca of modern architecture / 1455-40: San Anton Bridge and church / Spain / Bilbao

1455-12: Petit Palace Arana (3 stars)
Hi Tech Hotel in the old city (casco Viejo)
next to Arriaga theater, built in 1850
Renovated in August 2002.
http://www.hthoteles.com/
Bar and meeting room at the top floor

Bilbao, the Mecca of modern architecture / 1455-41: Statue of Diego Lopez de Haro, founder of the city of
Bilbao in 1300. / Spain / Bilbao

Bilbao, the Mecca of modern architecture / 1455-42: Buildings on the river side / Spain / Bilbao

Bilbao, the Mecca of modern architecture / 1455-43: Buildings on the river side / Spain / Bilbao

Bilbao, the Mecca of modern architecture / 1455-50: Puente Colgante.The first "transporter bridge" in the
world. Built in 1893 by Don Alberto de Palacio. Connects Getxo to Portugalete. / Spain / Bilbao

Bilbao, the Mecca of modern architecture / 1455-51: Puente Colgante: the first "transporter bridge" in the
world. Built in 1893 by Don Alberto de Palacio. Connects Getxo to Portugalete. / Spain / Bilbao

Bilbao, the Mecca of modern architecture / 1455-53: Folk feast in the old city (Casco Viejo) / Spain /
Bilbao

Bilbao. A
regeneration
story.
The atrium of the Silken Gran Hotel
Domine is packed with people coming and
going; not the usual clientele of a 5 stars
hotel,
but
cameramen,
journalists,
photographers,
directors,
various
assistants, etc. In the middle of this
provisional movie studio rises an
astonishing
artwork
entitled
'Fossil
Cypress', 90 tons of pebbles wrapped in a
simple wire mesh! This artificial/natural
column that occupies the entire verticality
of the building, from floor to ceiling (26
meters!), was signed by Javier Mariscal,
famous for the Barcelona Olympic Games
mascot,
Cobi.
Properly
speaking,
everything in this hotel was designed or
chosen by Mariscal. According to his
ambitious creative concept, he wanted to
pay homage the 20th century design. He
carried it out starting from the facade:
since this hotel, built in 2002, is standing
just opposite the Guggenheim museum,
the black-glass windows reflect through
odd angles the architectural wonder of
Frank O. Ghery.
Saioa, one of the hotel's PR girls, who
helps me to explore this temple of modern
design, explains me what happens: a
very-very famous TV persona will give an
interview in a few minutes. "Can you
imagine? She chose Bilbao for his very
first press conference of the season! A
few years ago only in our wildest dreams
could we have imagined this fortune". I
leave Sayioa in her dreams heading for
the hotel's rooftop terrace, which offers
definitely the best view in the city. The

gigantic sea-monster is right there in a
distance of few meters. Some call the
Guggenheim Museum 'the world's largest
toy', some others, 'the world's greatest
building'. Without doubt it is one of the
most spectacular constructions of the 20th
century,
a
gigantic
abstract-sculpture-building that seemed
impossible. "The randomness of the
curves are designed to catch the light",
said the american/canadian architect
Frank O. Gehry. And it is true, this magical
building changes colors and shapes
during the day depending on the light.
How possible is it that a single, even
legendary, building could change a city's
life? This is the case of Bilbao, often
referred as "the Guggenheim effect".
Nowadays BilbaĂ­nos vaguely remember
the post-industrial, rather depressive
image of their city, transformed into a
glamour tourist destination. "Botxo" as
they call it (it means "whole") is placed for
sure
on
Europe's
cultural
map.
Guggenheim was just the first step in
Bilbao's revitalization plan.

Bilbao's roots
Although 'Botxo' may seem like an odd
nickname for a port, it is fully accurate, as
Bilbao is an inland city, enclosed by green
hills and linked with the Cantabrian Sea
(15km northern) through the navigable
river Nervion. This river is responsible for
the city's real name that derives from the
phrase bi albo, which in euskara, the
Basque language, means two river banks.
Another interesting oddity concerning
Bilbao is the fact that, although the biggest
and the most important Basque city
(350,000 inhabitans, 1 million for the
Greater Bilbao), it isn't the capital of the

autonomous community of the Basque
Country. The capital is Vitoria-Gasteiz, the
second largest Basque city by population.
Much ado about nothing. Bilbao stood for
centuries as one of the most developed
cities of the entire country.
The first period of Bilbao's prosperity may
roughly extend from the 15-16th centuries
to the last decades of the 20th century. All
this time, the economic growth was based
mainly on commercial activities, financial
and maritime business since Bilbao was
the main export port of northern Spain
linking the country first to Europe and then
to the Americas. The city was gradually
expanded
and
embellished
with
emblematic buildings. The Old Quarter (or
Casco Viejo) a true labyrinth of narrow
cobblestone streets with long-standing
mansions and majestic churches (the
Basques, despite the abundant pagan
beliefs survived in their culture, are devout
and churchgoing catholics) is located in
the Right Bank of the river.
In the 19th century the discovery of vast
mineral deposits in the surrounding area
transformed further more Bilbao into an
industrial hub with steelworks and
shipyards and consequently into a rich
city. The constant growth of the population
was followed by urban expansion in line
with the demands of the city's elite for
bourgeois grandeur. This 'new' Bilbao,
endowed
with
wide
boulevards,
promenades shaded with trees, palatial
buildings and theaters, spread out towards
the Left Bank.
At the beginning of the eighties the deep
crisis of the iron and steel sectors hits
badly Bilbao, thus suffering a large
economic and social decline. From this
post-industrial times, apart the wastelands
and the wrecks, Bilbao inherited the
reputation of a "tough city". Some say that
this blend of different 'identities' (medieval,
neoclassical and industrial) in such a

restricted urban area forms the legend of
"Bilbao's charm" and explains furthermore
why the city get attract so many
internationally renowned architects.

The Cinderella's transformation
If someone walks today along the
promenades of Ripa, Abandoibarra,
Urbitrate or La Merced all remodeled with
attention to detail, designed like an
open-air museum exhibiting modern art
sculptures, he could never imagine how it
was the same setting just one decade
ago. The "before" and "after" pictures
shock. Where now these leisure parks
stand, ideal places for strolling, joking,
skating, bicycling etc., were nothing more
than abandoned factories, storehouses in
decay, rubbish, debris, ruins, a true
wasteland. Then, suddenly the BilbaĂ­nos
decided to react. The 'tough city' was
indeed too tough to die.
In 1991 the heads of the Basque Country
Administrations contacted the managers
of Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation
proposing them to participate to Bilbao's
revitalization plan. Once the design of
Frank O. Gehry and the location (a
deserted field of Abando area, just few
hundred meters from the city's center, the
Gran Via and the placa Moyua) has been
agreed on, they started the construction
work. The Guggenheim Museum was
completed in 1997; just the construction
cost, totally covered by the Basque
Country, was over $100 millions. One year
later 1.300.000 people had passed the
Museum's doors, three times the number
expected according the most optimistic
predictions - the initial goal was 400.000
visitors!
Three years later, in 2000, the world
famous Spanish architect and engineer

Santiago Calatrava constructed Pasarela
Zubizuri, an ultramodern suspension
bridge for pedestrians, one of the two new
bridges over the river Nervion - the other
is the pasarela Padre Arrupe designed by
Lorenzo Fernández Ordóñez, a footbridge
that links the Guggenheim museum to the
University of Deusto, one of the most
prominent academic institutions of Spain.
In the same year Calatrava was built the
city's airport too, known as La Paloma (the
Dove) because of its particular design.
Both these Calatrava's projects have been
criticized for impracticality: the bridge's
floor become slippery when it rains and
the airport lacks of space without any
prevision of enlargement. On the contrary,
the Bilbainos are really enthusiastic about
their metro system designed by the British
elite architect, Sir Norman Foster and
inaugurated in 1995. Many believe that
the metro's entrances, the curved
transparent structures at the street level
dubbed affectionately Fosteritos, are the
true symbols of Bilbao's new era.
As expected, a significant hotel boom has
resulted Bilbao's 'renaissance', clearly
modern in orientation. Apart the Mariscal's
Silken Gran Hotel Domine, another luxury
boutique-hotel, the Miró (just few hundred
meters away the Guggenheim Museum)
was created by the fashion designer
Antonio Miró. In the same neighborhood,
the
Abandoibarra
area,
next
to
Guggenheim and to the Euskalduna
Conference Center and Concert hall, was
built in 2005 the Bilbao Sheraton, an art
hotel; his architect, the Mexican Ricardo
Legorreta was inspired by the work of the
Basque sculpture Eduardo Chillida. Apart
the construction of new hotels, the already
existed accommodation facilities were

"refurbished". The most striking case of
hotel's renovation is that of Petit Palace
Arana in the city's center just in front of the
neoclassical Arriaga Theater. Located in
an emblematic 19th century building, on
the site of Bilbao's oldest hotel, Petit
Palace Arana is now a boutique-hotel that
mixes the hi-tech with the classic charm.

Passion for life

Why so many people are visiting and
re-visiting Bilbao? Just because of the
Guggenheim Museum? They say that this
incredible building overshadows the art
collections and the exhibitions that hosts
but i don't think that it has the same effect
in the city. Bilbao is a self-confident and
vibrant city full of energy. The Bilbaínos
have the reputation, apart of being
hard-workers, of food and fun enthusiasts.
They love to go out for dinner or drink.
Every evening, especially Tuesdays and
Fridays, the neighborhood Siete Callies of
Casco Viejo is swamped with people of
diverse ages and social classes standing
outside the miniature and of course
cramped bars. They call it 'poteo' or
'txikiteo' this pilgrimage from bar to bar
drinking wine, cider or beer, eating
'pintxos' (the Basque form of 'tapas' or tiny
portions of sophisticated dishes) and then
moving to the next bar for another round.
During this bar crawl nothing is left to
chance: each bar is known for a distinct
speciality.
The Basque Nouvelle Cuisine or Nueva
Cocina Vasca is now recognized as
among the best in Europe. In fact the
gastronomy is an all-important element of
the Basque culture, a long-standing
passion. In 1929 the city's authorities
commissioned the Basque architect Pedro

Ispizua to build a municipal Market. He
designed it like a ship ready to weigh
anchors for a trip across the Atlantic
Ocean. Eighty years later, this Mercado
still is Europe's largest covered market.
When i asked if they really need all these
10.431 sq.m. for choosing mostly
vegetables the answer was : Absolutely!
We love food.

Captions.
1455-06: Silken Grand Hotel Domine (5
stars)
Opened in front of the Guggenheim
Museum in 2002 . Designed integrally by
Javier Mariscal studio, Fernando Salas
and Inaki Aurrecoetxea were in charge of
the project.
http://www.grandhoteldominebilbao.com
Atrium, the "Cypress fossil" sculpture
1455-07: Silken Grand Hotel Domine (5
stars)
Opened in front of the Guggenheim
Museum in 2002 . Designed integrally by
Javier Mariscal studio, Fernando Salas
and Inaki Aurrecoetxea were in charge of
the project.
http://www.grandhoteldominebilbao.com
Stairs
1455-09- 10: Sondika Airport (Txoriherri
Valley)
Nickname "La Paloma" (the Dove) after its
bird shape . Designed by Santiago
Calatrava, opened in November 2000.
1455-13: Silken Grand Hotel Domine (5
stars)
Opened in front of the Guggenheim
Museum in 2002 . Designed integrally by
Javier Mariscal studio, Fernando Salas
and Inaki Aurrecoetxea were in charge of
the project.
http://www.grandhoteldominebilbao.com
Facade
1455-14: Silken Grand Hotel Domine (5
stars)
Opened in front of the Guggenheim
Museum in 2002 . Designed integrally by
Javier Mariscal studio, Fernando Salas
and Inaki Aurrecoetxea where in charge of

the project.
http://www.grandhoteldominebilbao.com
Lobby detail, red sofa produced by
Moroso
1455-15: Silken Grand Hotel Domine (5
stars)
Opened in front of the Guggenheim
Museum in 2002. Designed integrally by
Javier Mariscal studio, Fernando Salas
and Inaki Aurrecoetxea where in charge of
the project.
http://www.grandhoteldominebilbao.com
Lobby detail, red sofa produced by
Moroso
1455-18: Silken Grand Hotel Domine (5
stars)
Opened in front of the Guggenheim
Museum in 2002. Designed integrally by
Javier Mariscal studio, Fernando Salas
and Inaki Aurrecoetxea where in charge of
the project.
http://www.grandhoteldominebilbao.com
Atrium detail
1455-19: Silken Grand Hotel Domine (5
stars)
Opened in front of the Guggenheim
Museum in 2002. Designed integrally by
Javier Mariscal studio, Fernando Salas
and Inaki Aurrecoetxea where in charge of
the project.
http://www.grandhoteldominebilbao.com
The cocktail lounge
1455-20: Silken Grand Hotel Domine (5
stars).Opened in front of the Guggenheim
Museum in 2002. Designed integrally by
Javier Mariscal studio, Fernando Salas
and Inaki Aurrecoetxea where in charge of
the project.
http://www.grandhoteldominebilbao.com
Room interior, view from the bathroom
bathtub by Philippe Starck

1455-26: Club Arrebato, Muelle Marzana
5.
Avant-garde music club, decorated by the
owner Marcela, furniture designer. She
changes decoration every couple of
months. Special happening with TV stars
and other VIPs as DJs.
http://www.arrebato.info
The shop window, next to the entrance,
recalls the decoration of the club.
1455-27: Club Arrebato, Muelle Marzana
5.
Avant-garde music club, decorated by the
owner Marcela, furniture designer. She
changes decoration every couple of
months. Special happening with TV stars
and other VIPs as DJs.
http://www.arrebato.info
Interior, view on Ribera market.
1455-28: Club Arrebato, Muelle Marzana
5.
Avant-garde music club, decorated by the
owner Marcela, furniture designer. She
changes decoration every couple of
months. Special happening with TV stars
and other VIPs as DJs.
http://www.arrebato.info
Decoration detail